Mel Gibson has denied claims that he pushed and spat at a female photographer during an altercation in Sydney.

Kristi Miller, who works for the Daily Telegraph in Australia, said that Gibson confronted her after she was sent to get pictures of him attending a film screening.

After taking just a few pictures, Miller said that Gibson became aggressive and “shoved” her in the back before unleashing verbal abuse.

“He was spitting in my face as he was yelling at me, calling me a dog, saying I’m not even a human being and I will go to hell,” she said. “He swore and called me a c**t. It was non-stop, he didn’t even breathe.”

Gibson’s publicist has said that any physical contact is “complete fabrication”.

According to Miller, Gibson “lost control” during the incident and was “completely red in the face”.

She added that it was Gibson’s girlfriend who pulled him away from her and apologized for him. “He’s a celebrity,” she said. “I just didn’t expect that from him. I’ve covered courts… you kind of expect it from those people.”

“Basically Mr. Gibson and his friend were being harassed by this photographer and he asked her repeatedly to stop, which she did not,” said Gibson’s publicist Alan Nierob.

“There was never any physical contact whatsoever and the story being told by her is a complete fabrication of the truth.”

Police have said that they are looking at CCTV footage to determine whether an assault had taken place.

“At some stage we would request to interview Mr. Gibson’s partner who appears to be a witness,” said police superintendent Tony Crandell.

Gibson has a history of such incidents.

In 2006, he unleashed a tirade of anti-Semitic abuse after he was pulled over on suspicion of drunk driving in Los Angeles.

He said at the time: “After drinking alcohol on Thursday night, I did a number of things that were very wrong and for which I am ashamed.

“The arresting officer was just doing his job and I feel fortunate that I was apprehended before I caused injury to any other person. I acted like a person completely out of control when I was arrested, and said things that I do not believe to be true and which are despicable.”

In 2010, recordings emerged of abusive messages he left for his ex-wife Oksana Grigorieva. Gibson also produced a film in 2004 called “Paparazzi”, in which an actor takes murderous revenge on a pack of photographers who harass his family.